Phyllis Myrl Klaiber

Phyllis Myrl Klaiber (née Engelsdorfer) was born in the parsonage of St. Peter’s Evangelical and Reformed Church on Lawndale in Detroit, Michigan and immediately placed in a bedroom dresser drawer in lieu of a cradle according to family lore. She was the youngest of four children. She attended Oliver Wendell Holmes Elementary School and Western High School in Detroit. At the young age of 16, Phyllis went off to Elmhurst College located in Elmhurst, Illinois. Ultimately, she would graduate from college as well as the Deaconess College of Nursing in St. Louis, Missouri, becoming a registered nurse in both Missouri and Michigan, in 1957. In 1959, she married the late Dr. Roger Klaiber and they had three children together.

In her mid-life, Phyllis went back to work full-time initially as a nurse and then in hospital administration at Riverside Osteopathic Hospital in Trenton, Michigan. She retired from Riverside in 1997. Soon after, she moved to St. Louis before finally settling in Orland Park, Illinois in 2005.

Phyllis was active in a multitude of churches, community organizations and philanthropic causes her entire life in Michigan, Missouri and Illinois. Most recently, she was an active member of SWIFT (SouthWest InterFaith Team) and Faith United Methodist Church of Orland Park, where she was a member of the choir until just the last few years.

In her spare time, Phyllis loved not only singing at church and in various community capacities, but she was an avid reader and seamstress as well. Most importantly, she loved spending time with any of her children and grandchildren in any way possible.

Preceding Phyllis in death are her parents, Frederick and Helen Engelsdorfer as well as her siblings Marion, Marvin and Delvin and their respective spouses Paul, Dorothea and Margaret. Surviving her are her three children, Susan, David and Daniel and their respective spouses, Christof, Lesley and Jennifer. She is also survived by her seven grandchildren: Philipp, Helena, Benedikt, Jonathan, Andrew, Taylor and Emma, as well as many nieces and nephews. Lastly, she is survived by her dear caregiver, Tuya.

Phyllis’ family is planning a celebration of life event in the coming months, with details to be determined. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be sent to Eden Theological Seminary, 475 E. Lockwood Ave., St. Louis, MO 63119. (You may call the seminary at (314) 918-2691 to make a memorial gift over the phone and/or designate your gift to the Rev. Frederick H. and Helen Rabe Engelsdorfer Scholarship fund).